okoroshi oma mask, unrecorded Onitsha artist

Artwork Overview

unrecorded Onitsha artist, okoroshi oma mask
unrecorded Onitsha artist, okoroshi oma mask
unrecorded Onitsha artist
okoroshi oma mask
early-mid 1900s
unrecorded Onitsha artist, artist
okoroshi oma mask, early-mid 1900s
Where object was made: Nigeria
Material/technique: carving; paint; pigment; wood
Dimensions:
Object Height/Width/Depth (Height x Width x Depth): 28 x 21 x 23.5 cm
Object Height/Width/Depth (Height x Width x Depth): 11 x 8 1/4 x 9 1/4 in
Credit line: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. H. Kenneth Palmer
Accession number: 2007.2931
Not on display
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Label texts

Archive label for Palmer collection exhibit, date unknown:
The white face indicates that the departed spirit represented by the mask was female; male masks were black. This type of mask was worn by male members of the Mmwo Society at ceremonies involved with the yam cult and at the funerals of society members. Along with the mask would be a brightly-colored costume; and the departed would speak through the masks with spirit voices.